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Friends of the Fourth
District:
Last month, LA City Mayor James Hahn, I and dozens of other local
government, public safety and community leaders launched a signature
gathering effort to qualify the Local Taxpayers and Public Safety
Act for the November 2004 Ballot. I believe voters should have the
final say on future actions by the State that would take away
funding now designated for local governments to provide services
like law enforcement, fire protection, emergency health care, parks,
libraries and transportation.
The initiative, jointly sponsored by the League of California
Cities, the California State Association of Counties, and the
California Special Districts Association and supported by numerous
public safety and community organizations, would require voter
approval before the State could take and use local government funds
in the future. The measure would also require more timely
reimbursements from the State whenever it mandates a program,
service or added cost onto local governments.
We’re giving the voters of California the final say to protect their
local services from state raids. We encourage all voters to look for
this petition and sign it as soon as possible to protect our local
services.
The State has taken more than $40 billion in local property taxes
over the past decade from local governments to fund obligations of
the State. Legislators have continued to take a growing portion of
local revenues in times of both budget surpluses and budget deficits
-- forcing local governments to either raise local fees or taxes to
maintain services, or cut back on critically needed services.
Specifically, the 2004 Local Taxpayers and Public Safety Protection
Act:
- Requires voter approval before the Legislature can reduce local
government revenues or take them for state, rather than local,
purposes.
- Ensures that local tax dollars are available to fund local
services like police and fire, emergency and trauma care, parks,
roads, libraries and water delivery.
- Makes it absolutely clear that if the State Legislature mandates
that local governments provide new or expanded programs or services,
then the State would have to reimburse local governments for the
cost of those programs.
- Provides flexibility for state budgeting decisions, but requires
voter-approval on any future State Legislative actions that would
reduce funding for essential local services.
What the measure DOES
NOT do:
- Does not raise taxes. In fact, this measure will help decrease
pressures for local fees and taxes by protecting local revenue
sources from State raids.
- Does not increase funding to local governments. Simply prevents
the State Legislature from raiding future local government funding.
- Does not reduce funding that schools receive from local property
taxes or funding that schools receive from the State.
- Does not reduce funding for other state programs like schools or
highways.
We will be aggressively
gathering 1 million signatures in the coming months to ensure the
measure qualifies for the November 2004 ballot.
DON KNABE
Supervisor, Fourth District
County of Los Angeles
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